Early Neutering of Cats

We have added our name to the Cats Protection EARLY NEUTERING REGISTER, and have changed our practice policy. We now recommend neutering cats at 4 months old.

Last year Cats Protection spent over £6 million supporting the neutering of over 191,000 owned, stray and feral cats and kittens across the UK – that’s more than one every three minutes. However, the charity has been warning that this is not a long-term fix and says the only way to ensure the population is brought under control is for owners to get their cats neutered earlier than the traditionally recommended six months.

Cats are such prolific breeders that if they are not neutered, we would have a population explosion that would end up with sick, stray and abandoned cats roaming the streets. As a nation of animal lovers, this isn't acceptable.

However, research revealed 94 per cent of cat owners didn't release that cats can get pregnant as early as four months of age so Cats Protection have been working with the veterinary profession and the public to encourage cat neutering around four months of age, which is a significant move away from the traditional six months.

Numerous scientific studies have shown no long-term negative consequences resulting from neutering earlier. In fact there are many benefits including fewer unwanted litters and fewer pregnant cats suffering complications such as mammary tumours later on in their life or needing Caesarean sections, with early neutering being the norm in other cat-loving countries.

We have changed our cat neutering age to 16 weeks (4 months) and over.